1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to data 5 storage, and particularly to methods and systems for managing logical volumes in data storage systems.
2. Description of the Related Art
Data storage systems typically store data on physical media in a manner that is transparent to host 10 computers. From the perspective of a host computer, data is stored on virtual storage devices that are commonly known as logical volumes. Logical volumes are typically configured to store the data required for a specific data processing application. Data storage systems map logical 15 volumes to addressable physical locations on storage media, such as direct-access hard disks.
System administrators frequently make copies of logical volumes, for example in order to perform backups or to test and validate new applications. Such copies are 20 commonly referred to as snapshots.